Culture
REVIEW: Birmingham Royal Ballet – The Sleeping Beauty at Mayflower Theatre

Birmingham Royal Ballet are back at Mayflower Theatre with their rendition of the classic ‘The Sleeping Beauty’. BRB’s production of ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ was created by Sir Peter Wright, the same man also behind the company’s famous ‘The Nutcracker’ and ‘Swan Lake’. Now lots of people know the story of sleeping beauty, most probably from the 1959 Disney film; but the story is actually one that spans back around 500 years. Carlos Acosta’s (Director) ballet shows the best of the enchanting, classical experience with familiarities for all of the family. To add to the magic, you get to hear Tchaikovsky’s original music played live by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia!
One thing I love about BRB’s productions is just the sheer scale of everything. From the set, to costume, to the size of the company and all the extras in-between – nothing is forgotten. It takes the classical layout of a ballet and transports you to what you can only imagine an original ballet in the day was like. Yet it doesn’t feel dated! With ballet companies such as Matthew Bourne’s giving a new contemporary spin on ballet, there’s always potential for the classics to fade away. However from seeing a packed out Mayflower Theatre tonight, I can happily say that this isn’t the case. For those of you that don’t know the fairytale story of ‘The Sleeping Beauty’, I’ll give you a very quick run down: a beautiful Princess is cursed by an evil fairy by pricking her finger and falls into a deep, deep sleep. The only way to break this curse is from a Prince’s kiss. It’s a real good defeats evil story – and the way it’s told through ballet is immaculate.
The Prologue was just beautiful.
This ballet is split into four different sections; Prologue, Act 1, Act 2, and Act 3. Usually in my reviews I like to sum up what I thought of certain performances or sections within the show, but I think it only right that I give each section its own rundown. However I’d firstly like to give the whole company a huge round of applause and congratulations as they were all flawless. Each dancer left their all on that stage, and the way in which they told this story through only movement was exceptional. So without further ado:
The Prologue was just beautiful. This is the way you start a show and catch the attention of an audience immediately. All of the cast were perfectly in-sync and you could tell how polished and disciplined these dancers must be. This is the set up to the rest of the story we’re about to witness, so it’s also the part of the show that needs to have a lot of information put across and understood. Doing this solely through dance can be challenging for newbies to ballet, but the use of balletic mime literally gave speech to the dance (a little more on this later). The mixed solo and group pieces in this classical format was incredibly impressive, and I loved the shift from light to dark, good to evil. It was beautiful, but then all of a sudden it was beautifully dark. This is of course thanks to the energy of the company, but also the fantastic lighting effects used (more on this later once again). The portrayal of comedy throughout as well was definitely a fun extra.
Act 1 was where we are first introduced to ‘Princess Aurora’ played by the fantastic Yu Kurihara. Yu was outstanding! Aurora is one of the most demanding female leads in classical ballet, and Yu made it look like a piece of cake. As for the rest of the company, it was in this act that I couldn’t stop thinking: ballet dancers aren’t just performers, they’re athletes! The constant tempo change to not only keep attention but also allow the story to flow was not lost either. The change from celebration to darkness was seamless yet again. It was in this act that ‘Princess Aurora’ actually became ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ and got her finger pricked. I thought the way in which this was done was incredibly simple but also incredibly effective and easy to follow. If you know the story, I thought the way in which Aurora was led to sleep and locked away in the forest was also extremely effective.
Fantastic from everybody involved!
Act 2 is where we are introduced to ‘Prince Florimund’ played by Lachlan Monaghan. He showed such a strong stage presence and commanded himself and the story so powerfully. This is the act where we see the Prince first find the Princess and find out that he is in love with her. I think this act was possibly my favourite of them all. Everything fell together perfectly and that really helped paint a vivid picture for me. The high tempo change from the start of the act, dipping when the Prince is trying to get to Aurora, then climbing again when he finally gets her. The effects and set that were used in this act, from the forest to the fog really helped to give an impact onto the story that was being told.
Finally, Act 3 was probably the most fun of them all. It’s the high note now that good has finally defeated evil. It’s mystical, it’s whimsical, it’s just a good time. After having the perfect opening to the show, this is definitely the perfect ending to the show. There was again a mixture of solo, group and duet dances in a classical format which just flowed wonderfully. If you’re not used to a classical ballet format, this could perhaps feel quite long winded or strung out, but I think that it rounded out the story perfectly and it would have felt odd if it was done any differently. The whole company on the stage together really raised the energy and had you leaving the theatre on a high! Fantastic from everybody involved! The dancers movements were so powerful and strong and the dancing throughout was inspired from all of them.

As I mentioned briefly, the set and design of BRB’s ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ was perfection. The set was grand, it didn’t change much but it was big and regal which is exactly what it needed to be. The costumes were classic, sometimes crazy, and the way they moved with the dancers was beautiful. I mentioned how I particularly like the forest effect. This again was incredibly simple, it was just some curtains flying in staggered almost looking like giant cargo netting. Seeing the Princess sleeping behind one of these was a fantastic way of doing it. I also mentioned how good the lighting effects were. Every time Carabosse (The wicked fairy) appeared, there was thunder and lighting (and sometimes pyrotechnics). It was also a nice touch to add different coloured spotlights upon different characters depending if they were ‘good’ or ‘bad’. I also loved the fog that was used in act 3, the way it settled on the stage gave the effect that the audience was also lost – after following the feet of the dancers to now not being able to see them.
This is an amazing classical piece of ballet.
I mentioned earlier about balletic mime as well. If you’ve been to see a ballet before, you’re probably more than aware of certain pieces of mime meaning certain things. However if you’re new to it, you probably wouldn’t have a clue. I just wanted to say how impressed I was to find a little ‘balletic mime code’ in the programme! This would really help any audience member follow the story a little bit better. It’s also worth noting that for the kids (and adults), there is a comic book style storyboard of exactly what happens within the show. Amazing touch!
Overall, this is an amazing classical piece of ballet. The Royal Ballet Sinfonia were the cherry on the cake. The whole company are insanely talented and you can really tell how much work they put into polishing their performances. This isn’t just dance, it’s a story that is being told. The ballet can be quite daunting to just try and follow along with and know what’s going on, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say that this is the same. However, I think BRB have done a fantastic job at opening this up to everybody and helping them out; old and young, ballet connoisseur or newbie. This is a show for the whole family and I think you’ll love it if you’ve already seen a ballet, but I think you should also give BRB a go if you’ve never seen a ballet. I wish everybody involved with BRB’s ‘The Sleeping Beauty’ the best of luck, as it leaves Mayflower Theatre on the 10th February before carrying on on its UK tour.
Culture
Review of The Roses 2025

If something looks perfect from the outside does it mean it actually is?
That’s the concept that director Jay Roach brings to life in the new movie The Roses released in August 2025.
The Roses is a reimagining of the 1989 film The War of the Roses which was originally based on Warren Adler’s 1981 novel.
Although unlike the novel the characters instead are shown to struggle with their different careers either rising or falling.
It has been adapted, in my opinion, to make it resonate with women a lot more as in both the novel and first film the women were stay at home mothers who felt unsatisfied.
This appears to be one of the main reasons for the divorces with Barbara (Kathleen Turner) eventually turning to a catering business.
However, within the new modernised version Ivy’s (Olivia Colman) successful career is a point of contempt for Theo (Benedict Cumberbatch).
While it starts off with a more realistic depiction of parents struggling with the loss of a career and a start of a new one, it slowly divulges itself away from the typical divorcee movie.
I watched this movie at the Everyman (luxury I know!) and the grip it had on me as an audience member was outstanding.
With the selection of actors involved in this movie it’s no surprise that there is a mix of comedy and drama making it a satirical black comedy.
While it was delightful to watch, I feel that some audience members might criticise the realism of the movie.
Yet I go to the cinema to be transported from real life so the mix of realism and shock factor was highly entertaining.
A contrasting mix of comedy and darkness
The performances from the actors was exactly what the movie needed.
The chemistry, or lack thereof, between Colman and Cumberbatch was so believable that you would think that they were married in real life.
Their delivery of both the comedy and the rage was again so believable that it sucked me as the audience into what was the “dirty laundry” of their personal lives.
With a supporting cast including Andy Samberg, Allison Janney and others their characters mostly brought the comedy relief needed in to break the movie up.
They also gave us a contrast to the main relationship being shown which helped us recognise how some of the actions were exaggerated for our benefit.
However, some critics online have noted that while it is undeniably a satirical dark comedy, the dark comedy seemed to be held back some times, therefore not always giving it the edge it needed.
I think that for a 15 certificate movie it had just the right amount to stretch over its wide audience.
Another criticism that The Roses received was that the contrast between the comedy and cruelty was sometimes so abrupt that it didn’t hit as hard as it could have.
At some points the comedy seemed out of place which almost gave the film a sort of jarring feel as they changed between the emotions.
The ending is ambiguous which can have mixed reactions from the audience.
Some may like to have the movie tied up neatly at the end whereas others like that they can believe what they want to believe.
I am the latter in the case of this movie as I enjoyed the fact that I could believe either the more macabre ending or not.
To me the ending, without giving any spoilers, had me on the edge of my seat with a real 360 turn.
Again it had the perfect amount of shock factor and comedy which highlighted the overall tone throughout.
I felt that it drew the entire film together nicely especially with the ending performance from Coleman and Cumberbatch.
Culture
Sam Bishop’s new single – Just a Little

Winchester original artist Sam Bishop has been releasing music for almost a decade but after not releasing a new song for the last two years, Just a Little is set to be release this Friday, February 7th.
Sam first got into music when he was in secondary school, after watching Imagine Dragons in the O2 he fell in love with their support act.
As an only child he has always been a creative person, writing stories and songs in his free time.
The first thought has never been how can I perform live but how can I write?
Sam also enjoyed:”I enjoy feeling nervous but eventually acting felt like second nature, so I decided to give music a go.”
After getting into music in school Sam released his first song in 2016.
“It has been trial and error since with each year getting better and better performing and writing more.”
I asked him whether he has always written his own songs, and he explained: “The first thought has never been how can I perform live but how can I write?
“That’s the angle I attack music with.”
For Sam music has always been a way to express how he feels.
But what’s the best part of the writing process?
Well, for Sam it’s the feeling of a song coming together as a whole, he compared the writing process to a tap, that it slowly drips until it starts to flow.
“You get a melody and a good lyric. It feels amazing when it all comes together it’s so special, it’s definitely a process it takes time and trial and error.”
Sam’s new single Just a Little, is no different, going through this same process, and has now come together ready for its release this Friday.
It all started in last summer, when Sam was on a flight from Miami to LA, he wasn’t interested in watching the typical films you find on airplanes, and felt creative, this is where the chorus for Just a Little was born.
Being away from family for a prolonged amount of time through working away and travelling gave Sam the feeling of wanting to be connected and keep in touch with people’s lives whilst being away.
Just a Little is about questioning whether you’re enough.
It’s a song full of vulnerability and expressing that and truly allowing yourself to feel those feelings.
After Sam’s travels he got home and revisited the song, from there it started to take off and really build.
He sent the song to his friend Toby who he describes as an unbelievable guitarist, and an excellent musician.
Toby then worked on the song as a production, whilst Sam worked on the lyrics.
Just a Little was kind of a one off, as a process it was very natural.
By mid-November the song was finished and now is the time for its release.
This song has a different sound to Sam’s previous songs, and he’s excited for people to hear this new style of music from him.
“It’s a very personal song washed under happy and jolly music.
“It’s very current and popular; something you’d expect to hear on the radio.”
Sam hopes that that the release allows people to connect with not just the lyrics but how the song feels.
Following the release Sam has big plans for the next year.
This is the start of a new sound for him, and he hopes more songs like this will follow with maybe one or two before the end of the year.
There are also a number of gigs to be announced for the next three months that he is looking forward to performing.
At the end of our interview Sam said: “Songs will happen, it’s what I love to do it’s so expressive as an art form and it’s something I will always want to do.
“Just a Little was kind of a one off, as a process it was very natural.
After not releasing a song for two years, once the lyrics were finished and he got the song back from Toby he knew this was the one that this would be the re-release of his music as an original artist.
Just a Little is out at midnight February 7th.
For announcements of new music and dates of performances you can follow Sam on Instagram @sambishopmusician.
Community
Highly anticipated Five Guys restaurant has opened on Winchester High Street

The wait is over for Winchester’s burger lovers, as a new Five Guys restaurant has opened in the heart of the city centre.
The American burger chain, world famous for its customisable smash burgers and seemingly bottomless fries opened on Monday, December 2nd.
It was a soft launch without any ceremony for the restaurant, but the new staff and management immediately had a growing queue of customers on their hands.
Five Guys has taken one of three units from the former Debenhams department store. The other two are Nando’s which opened last month and Pizza Express.
Founded in Virginia in 1986, Five Guys launched in the UK in 2013 and has become a popular choice for burger lovers, including celebrities such as Tommy Fury, Mollie King, Ed Sheeran, and Maya Jama.
There are now 1,800 restaurants worldwide including 171 in the UK.
The new Winchester branch is expected to be a popular addition to the city’s food scene.
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